Here Now & Just Back WDW Reopening Experiences Including Park Hopping

[Sarahslay]

I can tell you on my last day I decided not to purchase Genie + and rope dropped (Early Entry) Space Mountain. Disney reported 40 minutes around 8:40 and I waited 20...I tell you being 6'3" that ride always makes me think I am going to be scalped.

my husband is 6'3" and always tries to scrunch down as far as he can in that seat. His ride photos are hilarious, like a turtle trying to hide in his shell. I will say that rope drop is a completely different story with that line, it will move! When I go back for my solo trip in June I plan on hitting it at opening, they don't have a chance to get backed up at that point.

 

[MainMom]

my husband is 6'3" and always tries to scrunch down as far as he can in that seat. His ride photos are hilarious, like a turtle trying to hide in his shell. I will say that rope drop is a completely different story with that line, it will move! When I go back for my solo trip in June I plan on hitting it at opening, they don't have a chance to get backed up at that point.

This is our plan end of May/beginning of June. Good to know about RD Space Mountain. Thanks!

 

[butterscotchcollins]

I do think G+ is making the lines longer overall, I use DAS and even notice that they clear that G+ line faster than they ever did the FP line. If they notice it getting a lot of people lined up they start just flowing that line through and let the standby line stack up. With FP+ they would do the "a little from this line....a little from that line..." approach and that worked to keep it flowing at least a little better. Maybe it's to make people feel they got their money out of it (don't want to have to wait after you paid for it after all, it wasn't free), or making the people in the line go "Man, maybe I should pay for G+, I'm tired of standing in these long lines"...or a little bit of both.

Back in Nov I felt like they were more equitable with alternating between LL and standby but it has gotten noticeably worse. And I get giving priority to LL because yeah they paid for it but the standby waits need to be more accurate then - I don’t mind waiting 60 minutes, but I mind waiting 75 minutes in a line posted as 45.

 

[bambialways4ever]

I do think G+ is making the lines longer overall, I use DAS and even notice that they clear that G+ line faster than they ever did the FP line. If they notice it getting a lot of people lined up they start just flowing that line through and let the standby line stack up. With FP+ they would do the "a little from this line....a little from that line..." approach and that worked to keep it flowing at least a little better. Maybe it's to make people feel they got their money out of it (don't want to have to wait after you paid for it after all, it wasn't free), or making the people in the line go "Man, maybe I should pay for G+, I'm tired of standing in these long lines"...or a little bit of both.

I also think the fact that DAS uses the lightning lane is part if it too. They take 10 mins off a DAS return time to help account for the time waiting in the lightning lane line.

Disney would have a real problem with many of its DAS users if lightning lane lines were regularly 30 minutes long

 

[Sarahslay]

I also think the fact that DAS uses the lightning lane is part if it too. They take 10 mins off a DAS return time to help account for the time waiting in the lightning lane line. Disney would have a real problem with many of its DAS users if lightning lane lines were regularly 30 minutes long

I was told by a CM that they take the 10 minutes off to account for times being off (like it says 60 minutes but it's actually 50), but who knows. I don't mind waiting a little while at all, I just literally can not wait in long lines for several reasons. I actually started having sensory issues and lost it in the FOP LL queue last week when the lady behind us decided she was going to stand so close we were touching AND she was going to talk so loud to the person she was with that she was pretty much yelling....to the person standing less than a foot away from her. Sent me off, ended up in the fetal position on the floor of the queue which was awesome as an adult woman who doesn't ever want to do that in public. That was actually the only LL where we ever had to wait, they definitely don't care about emptying that one out some times. I really think that moving that line quickly has zero to do with DAS and everything to do with paying guests and wanting other people waiting to feel like they NEED the service, purely psychological.

 

[Sarahslay]

Back in Nov I felt like they were more equitable with alternating between LL and standby but it has gotten noticeably worse. And I get giving priority to LL because yeah they paid for it but the standby waits need to be more accurate then - I don’t mind waiting 60 minutes, but I mind waiting 75 minutes in a line posted as 45.

Yep, I've heard several people mention this who have been to the parks over the course of G+ being rolled out. One friend went the second week it was in use, and she was there week before last over MLK, and she said she felt it was almost like they noticed people weren't using it so now they're dangling the carrot out there like "come on, these lines are long....you know you want to pay for it". She paid for it the first time, but only did it one day on her last trip because she was there with her daughters band so rides weren't a priority, but it did make her angry on the second trip. I noticed pretty much what she told me when I went too, hoping I wouldn't, and I hope it was just a fluke because it was so crowded. I just hope it doesn't just keep getting worse.

 

[ItsOnlyMoney]

We went to Universal for 2 days. HP world was MOBBED. The rest of the park wasn't as bad but we aren't roller coaster people so only did a few rides.
And even though we came prepared with wool sweaters and ponchos we think next trip (in several years) we will try to find a week in March or April.
Regular Genie kept trying to send us to rides way across the park or suggested a ride we were near 4 hours later. The only good part was that rather than go all across the park to find a long wait time I was able to check for rides closer to where we were. And mobile order meals.

 

[hulagirl87]

We just got back yesterday and I definitely have some thoughts Overall, it was a great trip! We haven't been in over 3 years and it was amazing to be back in the magic! We went to Epcot our first night in, got in line for Living with the Land and waited 20 minutes, got right to the front and the line stopped. We waited for about 10 minutes and then were told that the ride had broken down and someone would scan our bands to give us a "fastpass" for another ride. We went over to Soarin' and they scanned our bands and sent us through the Lightning Lane line so we got to ride that. Sunday was our Hollywood Studios day and we woke bright and early to get to Rise of the Resistance. We arrived at 8:15am with the masses and headed that way to be told that it was down and that it should be up by 9. We decided to wait down that way but when we got closer to the ride they said the didn't know when it would be up, so conflicting information. So we headed to Runaway Railway. Waited there in line for 20 minutes, didn't move at all and then were told that it was down as well. Went to Rock n Roller Coaster and that was up and running so we rode that, but while waiting in line, looked at the app and Slinky Dog was down too. Not a good start to the day! The wait times were crazy since so much was down. Finally everything came back up and running, but it was so busy and wait times were all 80+ minutes for pretty much everything.

Observation at every park..... Lines move very slowly. Lightning lane slows things down in my opinion. They stop the lines very frequently to let in 20+ people from the Lightning Lane line.

Crowds were crazy. In all my 30+ trips, I've never waited longer in lines than I did this trip. Wait times were pretty accurate with what was listed. If it said 80 minutes, it was 80 minutes or more. Remy especially. That wait time said 90 minutes, but we waited a little more than that, and then sadly didn't even like the ride. The 3D seemed really blurry to me at times and I couldn't focus. It was weird. Glad I did it, but know I won't do it again. Though a couple days ago, the wait time for Winnie the Pooh said 40 minutes, but we only waited 15, so that was a pleasant surprise!

Loved all the characters they had out at MK on the Railroad platform thing! So fun!

The weather was amazing! So much sunshine!

All the good we ate was delicious. They were very accommodating with my allergies. All our servers were incredible.

Used Uber a few times and that was amazing and so quick! One day the wait at our resort for the MK bus was over 100 people, so we called an Uber which picked us up in 2 minutes and got us to the TTC within 15 minutes. And we took the Ferry over to MK which I have never done in all my times there! We loved that!

I wish waits had been less, but we still had a magical time!

I'm lucky and get to go back with my friend in a couple months and can't wait to get back!

 

[ItsOnlyMoney]

>Remy especially. That wait time said 90 minutes, but we waited a little more than that, and then sadly didn't even like the ride. The 3D seemed really blurry to me at times and I couldn't focus. It was weird <

I too thought the 3d was blurry. I also had that issue with Flight of Passage. If I looked up through the top part it was ok but otherwise it didn't seem as though the glasses worked at all.

 

[Lsdolphin]

We found Uber to be amazing rides showed up within a few minutes didn’t experience any of the crazy surge pricing we had in early Dec. drivers were all friendly. I did tip in cash instead of online so drivers didnt have to wait for their tips and the drivers were all very appreciative of this.

 

[Gary Stocker]

To wrap a bow on my solo trip...they had the 50th anniversary Monorail sets and I shipped home since it wouldn't fit in my luggage...opening and closing doors, announcements...my boys 6th birthday gift..at least that's I am telling him. Not bad. .took a week to ship from the emporium to my house in NJ

 

[BK2014]

We are local and have APs. We went to EPCOT this morning. Arrived at about 8:35am, and waited with the non-early entry crowds until they let us in a few minutes before 9:00am. Went straight to Soarin' and it was a walk on. (Am I the only one who likes a very short line over a walk-on, as by the time I huff it to the ride and through the entire queue I could use a moment to catch my breath before boarding?)

As we huffed it from the front of the park to Soarin' with the masses, I heard exasperated woman exclaim to her party as we were passing The Seas with Nemo and Friends - "What is this? Is this Ratatouille?"

After Soarin'' we headed to Remy. We got in line at about 9:30 with a posted 60 minute wait.

The party in front of us was a mother and son (maybe mid-teens?) who argued the entire 65 minutes in line. They were seated behind us on the ride. When we boarded, the CM complimented the son's shirt. I thought that this might help change the mood between the two, but then the mother sighed and asked "why are you wearing the same shirt as yesterday!?" Not sure why she only noticed it at that point, as the kid was wearing just the shirt during the entire wait in the queue.

We were off the ride in time to get to our 10:40 ADR at Le Creperie.

For Remy, having ridden several times, I seem to enjoy the ride more from the front row - the 3D and simulated movement parts seem more immersive when I am in the front.

This was our first time at Le Creperie. The restaurant is nice, the service was good. We were not impressed with the galettes that we had. We have no prior galette experience to compare it to, but I don't think DW or I are fans of the buckwheat flour or whatever is used.

It was definitely a cool day at EPCOT with a constant breeze.

 

[jmparry]

My dole whip mobile order took nearly 50 minutes today. Placed it before hopping on jungle cruise, checked in for my window after we got off, and waited about 30 minutes in front of aloha with about 50 other people by my count. Walk up line would have been faster. Just a heads up if you're visiting this week, that's the crowds we have.

We had very good experiences with mobile ordering between 1/28 and 2/2. Sometimes we ordered meals and sometimes we ordered snacks, and everything was ready in 5-10 min (even with a long standby line). The only exception was Aloha Isle for Dole Whips. I think this mobile order location works more like Gideon's Bakehouse...the alert that says your order is ready only means it's your turn to get in line. They can't get the frozen stuff ready ahead of time, so it ends up taking longer since they fill the order only after you've reached the counter. On the upside, I didn't have to order or pay when I got to the counter and the Dole Whips were worth the wait!

 

[jmparry]

Just got back from BWI CL 1/27-1/30.

We liked Genie+ for the most part. We were able to get through everything we wanted to in 2.5 days including almost all of the headliners in all four parks. We actually felt like Genie+ and ILL$ gave us more time to explore and be in the moment than ever before. We did Harmonious Dinner Package at R & C and we didn't find the view to be terrible at all (plus the food was excellent). Mousekeeping was hit or miss event though we were CL, but aside from that, we had zero problems with service. We felt well taken care of, and just about every CM we encountered was as friendly and helpful as any other time we've been there with just one exception (and even then, she wasn't unkind...she just didn't know what the heck she was talking about lol).

Bottom Line: There's a lot of negativity out there right now, but I am here to tell you that it is absolutely possible to have a magical, memorable time even thought things are different now. We can't wait to go back this summer!

Out of curiosity, did you book your Harmonious R&C package ahead of time or day of? I was unable to find any availability beginning at 60 days out.

 

[Jennasis]

Friendly reminder that the Touring Plans Lines app works off of crowdsourced data, if you are seeing wild discrepancies between projected and actual wait times please be part of the solution and submit your times. Too many people passively downloading the app and using it like another MDE doesn’t help anyone.

THIS!! We submit a wait time on LINES for every ride we do. Gotta be a part of the solution!

 

[lilmc]

THIS!! We submit a wait time on LINES for every ride we do. Gotta be a part of the solution!

Every. Single. Ride. I just wish there were some way I could time stamp the timer and submit later when I have better connectivity. So frustrating to go through the effort and I can’t submit. Lose for them on the data point and lose for me on the effort.

 

[meremac]

Out of curiosity, did you book your Harmonious R&C package ahead of time or day of? I was unable to find any availability beginning at 60 days out.

We booked it ahead of time.

 

[meghanmione]

Spending the day at HS today! Got up at 6:30, purchased Genie and got Rise at 7 first thing (said it was for 2:00ish, we got 7:50-8:50. had we waited just SECONDS longer we would’ve missed out) and MRR with a return for 3:35. Our first LL was for Rn’RC for 11:10, so we slept in a bit and made our way to the park by boat around 9:30.

Park is busy but not unmanageable at all. Standbys are all almost 60+ mins, however. We did our Rn’RC LL at 11:20 and just about walked on (forgot just how fun that is!). Waited in standby for ST, posted was 55 felt like 30.

We took a boat back over to BWI for lunch around 1:00. After we eat we’ll head back to the park for our next MRR ILL at 3:30. Afterwards we’ll do more standbys. We have three more rides after that stacked for tonight. MFSR at 6:55, TSM at 7:30 and Rise at 7:50. Quite a bit of overlap but should give us plenty of time to ride.

This is our first time ever using Genie+ and we are getting the hang of it quite well. I agree it’s tedious but to enjoy the headliners at HS it is a must, unless you want to wait 60+ for everything.

Having a wonderful time, the weather is perfectly “chilly” for us Floridians. Tons of random character moments/events have happened all day. Super
excited to see what tonight has in store.

 

[lovethattink]

The cast member party for MK was canceled for tonight. I don’t know if MK hours will change or not? And I heard the cm party will be rescheduled.

 

[emmabelle]

We’re going to MK tomorrow morning. Does anyone know what time resort guests are being let in? Are the rides starting earlier than 8:30am?